Container for a dispensable product having a pressure relief valve



A. L. HART Nov. 13, 1962 CONTAINER FOR A DISPENSABLE PRODUCT HAVING APRESSURE RELIEF VALVE Filed March 13, 1958 INVENTORQ flfifi/UR L. HARTBY Am 4% United States Patent F 3,063,603 CONTAINER FOR A DISPENSABLEPRODUCT HAVING A PRESSURE RELIEF VALVE Arthur L. Hart, Cary, IlL,assignor to American Can Company, New York, N.Y., a corporation of NewJerse y Filed Mar. 13, 1958, Ser. No. 721,282

4 Claims. (Cl. 222-482) This invention relates to valves and moreparticularly to a pressure relief valve for a container.

In many instances, after a container has been scaled, an internalpressure change takes place. For example, when coffee is placed in acontainer, an amount of carbon dioxide is generated by the cofiee whichbuilds up a pressure within the container. It is ideal to provide adevice for relieving this generated pressure.

Still a further example of a pressure problem lies in the plasticcontainer having two metal ends covered by United States Patent No.2,753,088. When this container is used to hold a liquid detergent,particularly when the detergent has an afiinity for oxygen, a vacuum iscreated within the container as the oxygen is absorbed by the detergent.In an extreme case, this vacuum might cause the plastic walls to panel-aterm which is used in the trade to indicate a deformation or collapse ofthe side walls of the container.

It follows that it is a prime object of this invention to provide animproved valve mechanism which will permit the transfer of a fluidrelative to the wall of a container to balance pressures withoutpermitting leakage of the contents of the container.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide a one-wayvalve for equalizing the pressure on opposite sides of the wall of acontainer.

It is still a further object of this invention to provide. an improvedone-way valve mechanism.

Numerous other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparentas it is better understood from the following description, which, takenin connection with the accompanying drawings, discloses a preferredembodiment thereof.

With specific reference to the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a front elevation, partly cut away, showing a valve andcontainer assembly;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged view of the valving arrangement of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a front elevation, partially cut away, showing a secondembodiment of the valve and container assembly; and

FIGURES 4 and 5 are enlarged end views of the same position of the valveshown in FIGURE 1 under two conditions of operation.

Briefly this invention relates to a strip of flat flexible and/orresilient material provided with an internal passageway and thus havingthe configuration of flattened tubing and wherein the passagewaycommunicates with an aperture in the wall of a container. In a preferredform the flattened tubing prevents the escape of the contents of thecontainer and yet permits the admission of fluid from without thecontainer.

With reference to the drawings and particularly FIG- URE 1, a container2 is shown comprising a pair of end walls 4, 6 and a cylindrical bodywall 8 hermetically sealed to the end walls. in the illustratedembodiment the body wall 8 is an imperforate plastic tube such as thetype described in United States Patent No. 2,753,088.

In the illustrated embodiment, a valve 10 comprises a stem 12, a lengthof lay flat tubing 14 which is joined at one end to the stem 12 toprovide a passage duct therethrough, and which is free at its oppositeend. The lay wall pressure to that of the outside.

3,063,693 Patented Nov. 13, 1962 flat tubing is very flexible and in itsnormal condition its opposite sides are juxtaposed. In this manner anypressure on the opposite sides of the lay flat tubing tends to close thesides tighter and thereby form a seal to prevent the passage of thecontents from the inside of the container into stem 12.

The stem 12 is positioned in an aperture 16 formed in a dispensing spout18. The latter is formed of a resilient material which is snapped insealed relationship into the dispensing opening 26 of the end wall 4.The dispensing spout 18 has an axial bore 22, and a captive cap 24connected by a flexible hinge 26 to the body portion of the dispensingspout.

The aperture 16 in dispensing spout 18 is displaced from the axial bore22 and preferably lies under the hinge 26 which thereby forms aprotective covering.

While the stem 12 in the embodiment shown in FIG- URE 1 is connectedthrough the aperture 16 in the dispensing spout 18, it is quite apparentit would operate as efiectively if it were connected in sealed conditionto any other aperture in a container wall, such as the stem 12 shownpositioned in the end wall 4 of the container 2' of FIG. 3.

With this construction, after the container has been filled-usually witha hot detergent-and then sealed With the dispensing spout 18, which isclosed with the captive cap 24, the valve 10 will operate to balance theinternal Specifically as the vacuum is created in the container, due tothe cooling of the liquid detergent, or due to the absorption of theoxygen by the detergent, air Will pass through the stem 12 of the valve10 and through the lay flat tubing 14 (now in its FIG. 5 position) intothe container.

On the other hand, if the sides of the container are squeezed todispense the liquid, or if the container is merely inverted, the liquidcannot enter the lay flat tubing 14, since any positive pressure insidethe container merely acts to tighten the contact between the twojuxtaposed sides of the lay flat tubing 14, as shown in FIG. 4.

It is thought that the invention and many of its attendant advantageswill be understood from the foregoing description, and it will beapparent that various changes may be made in the form, construction andarrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit and scope ofthe invention or sacrificing all of its material advantages, the formhereinbefore described being merely a preferred embodiment thereof.

1 claim:

1. A container for a dispensable product, comprising hermetic wallsenclosing a product; means defining an aperture in one of said Walls;closure means seated in said aperture, said closure means having adirect passage therethrough; and a one-way pressure relief valve whichincludes a relatively inflexible tubular conduit member received in saidpassage and directly opening at one end to the atmosphere, and arelatively flexible flat conduit member connected at one-end to theopposite end of said relatively inflexible conduit and directlycommunicating at its opposite end with the interior of said container,whereby said relatively flexible conduit opens to balance a negativeinterior pressure with the outside atmospheric pressure to relievestrains on said container Walls, and whereby said relatively flexibleconduit closes to seal the passage in said closure means against leakageof said product therethrough upon increase of said interior pressurerelative to said outside atmospheric pressure.

2. A container for a dispensable product, comprising hermetic wallsenclosing a product; means defining an aperture in one of said walls;closure means seated in said aperture, said closure means having adirect passage therethrough; and a one-way pressure relief valve whichincludes conduit means selectively communicating the interior of saidcontainer with the atmosphere, said conduit means including a relativelyinflexible cylindrical portion fixedly received at oneend in saidpassage and a relatively Jflexible flat tubular portion connected to theopposite end of said cylindrical portion and depending Within saidcontainer from said one wall thereof, whereby said relatively flexibleportion opens to balance a negative interior pressure with the outsideatmospheric pressure to relieve strains on said container walls, andwhereby said relatively flexible tubular portion closes to seal thepassage in said closure means against leakage of said producttherethrough upon increase of said interior pressure relative to saidoutside atmospheric pressure.

the atmosphere, said valve further including a flat normally collapsedsecond tubular portion connected to said first tubular portion anddepending Within said container in spaced relation to the body portionthereof, whereby said collapsed tubular portion opens to balance anegative interior pressure with the outside atmospheric pressure torelieve strains on said container body portion, and whereby saidcollapsed tubular portion closes to seal said passage in said closuremeans against leakage of thecontainer contents therethrough uponincrease of said interior pressure relative to said outside atmosphericpressure.

4. A container for a dispensable product, comprising a relativelyflexible tubular body portion and a pair of relatively rigid end membersconnected thereto, one of said end members having a central aperturetherein; a closure seated in said aperture and having a productdispensing orifice, said closure adjacent said orifice being providedwith a vent passage; and a one-way pressure relief valve which includesa relatively inflexible tubular conduit member received in said passageand directly opening at one end to the atmosphere, and a relativelyflexible flat conduit member connected at one end to the opposite end ofsaid relatively inflexible conduit and directly communicating at itsopposite end with the interior of said container, whereby saidrelatively flexible conduit opens to balance a negative interiorpressure with the outside atmospheric pressure to relieve strains onsaid container body portion, and whereby said relatively flexi- -b1econduit closes to seal the passage in said closure means against leakageof said product therethrough upon increase of said interior pressurerelative to said outside atmospheric pressure.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS534,552 Davis Feb. 19, 1895 2,660,343 Charpiat Nov. 24, 1953 2,715,981Moubayed Aug. 23, 1955 72,727,644 Giannos DecJZO, 1955 2,808,967 MillerOct. 8, 1957 2,812,120 Beall Nov. 5, 1957 2,915,223 Beall Q. Dec. 1,1959

